Stephen King said in an interview to Goodreads, “There’s a saying—’Write what you know.’ It’s bad advice if you take it as an unbreakable rule, but good advice if you use it as a foundation.” I look at that quote often for inspiration when trying to figure out what my next topic will be. I recalled it recently when trying to figure out ways to raise money for the Alzheimer’s Association. I realized I had been taking the wrong approach.
Malcolm Gladwell said in his book, Outliers: The Story of Success, that in order to be an expert at something, you need, “10,000 hours of deliberate practice is the magic number required to achieve world-class mastery in any field.” I’ve been an involved dad for over 200,000 hours, which makes me an expert dad. Although I don’t feel like an expert.
As a father of 4, I know a thing or two about raising kids. I’ve written over 800 stories/posts for this blog and other sites about raising kids. I’ve sat on panels and been interviewed on the news and TV shows, as well as spoken about fatherhood in commercials. I’m going to offer advice I’ve picked up over the years while seeking donations.
Here’s how it works:
For every donation of $10.00, I will answer a parenting question during the marathon. The person asking can send me the question here, on social media, or on the donation page. I will answer every question while running the streets of New York City on November 1. After the race, I will make a compilation video where I answer all the questions.
Here is the link to donate: https://events.alz.org/fundraisers/jasongreene/nyc-marathon
I’m running the NYC Marathon with my own kids in mind. Alzheimer’s runs in my family, and I want to see it end before it reaches my children. There are currently over 6 million Americans with Alzheimer’s, and that number is expected to spread to 13 million by 2050. There have been major recent strides in Alzheimer’s research, in which the Alzheimer’s Association has been a major contributor. There’s a lot more work to be done.
